Sorry if it confused you, what I mean, is that, we have this problem in our current theme setup, wherein if there is a update in IPB core and new hook or udpated hook, our theme is not updated since it is a custom theme.
What I mean, is that, if parent theme is updated we want to make sure that the child theme is also updated with new hooks update.
I just read this article
I don't know how include template works, but it seems that if you go with the include template it means you modify the template and if there is a new update you need to re-add it, correct?
So the effective way I see is using the plugin and use theme hook.
Similar with WP parent and child theme, where when you modify the parent theme using child, you just tap into the hook of the parent theme to alter design or functionality.
Im a WP dev and IPB is new to me.
--ALlan